In The Wild Heart Kitchen

Perfect No-Bake Granola Bars are the ultimate wholesome snack with just the right amount of salty, sweet, chewy and decadence. Each square is loaded with oats, seeds, nuts, tahina, dark chocolate and a dusting of flaky salt.

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Here, on the homestead, I make almost everything from scratch; granola bars are no exception. 

The only problem is….

I really hate granola bars. 

For years, I have been on the hunt for the perfect one; but that hunt became the story of goldy-locks. The bars are either too sweet, too salty, too sweet and too salty, too soft, or too rock solid. 

But I want a granola bar that’s “just right.” 

I want to transform granola bars; reincarnating them from being that last resort nibble floating around at the bottom of your purse, into something you can’t wait to snack on. 

My Perfect No-Bake Granola Bars are just right. 

These bars are the best on-the-go snack for long days filled with family outings, or a long summer afternoon working outside tending the garden beds and chopping wood.

Fall In Love With Perfect No-Bake Granola Bars!

My children devour my Perfect No- Bake Granola Bars because each bite has just the right amount of sweetness and “goodies,” like bits of date, crunchy almonds and pumpkin seeds. The bars are drizzled with dark chocolate for a little decadence, and a flourish of flaky Maldon salt to round out the tachina’s richness. My always-noshing husband specifically requests these bars over other snacks because they satiate his constant case of the munchies. He can grab one out of the fridge and get back out to his endless farm work, quickly.

As a no-bake bar, my recipe contains a few steps but each part is easy and relatively quick. The tachina, maple syrup and dates hold these bars together and provide a sweet, buttery flavor; however, the add-ins to these bars can be customized to your personal taste. Using quality tahini is key here! I love Soom Tahini – give them a try!

I have made many versions of these bars over the years, but this combination is by far my favorite. It has just the right amount of crunch, chew, sweet, and salty. If you want, you can toss in ¼ cup of dried chopped cranberries or dried cherries, swap the pumpkin seeds for sunflower seeds; the possibilities are endless. 

I hope you enjoy my Perfect No-Bake Granola Bars and snack with confidence!

Note: I first published this portions of this article & recipe in Whisk By Ami Magazine. Find more of my Homestead Kitchen recipes there!

Print Recipe

Perfect No-Bake Granola Bars

The ultimate wholesome snack with just the right amount of salty, sweet, chewy and decadence. Filled with oats, seeds, nuts, tahina, dark chocolate and a dusting of flaky salt.

Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: granola, no bake, nuts, oats, seeds, tahini

Servings: 9 bars

Author: wildheartkitchen

Ingredients

• 2 cups oats toasted
• ½ cup dates roughly chopped
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• ¼ cup techina
• 1 cup almonds roughly chopped
• ½ cup pumpkin seeds
• 2 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 2 small pinches kosher salt
• ⅓ cup dark chocolate melted
• ½ teaspoon olive oil
• Malden salt to sprinkle

Instructions

• Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper and set aside.
• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
• Scatter the oats on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and toast the oats for about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. The oats should become a deep golden color.
• While the oats are toasting, put the dates in a small food processor. Process the dates until they are mushy. (If your dates aren’t from a freshly opened bag and are on the drier side, let them soak in hot water for 5 minutes before processing them.)
• In a microwave safe bowl, combine the tachina and maple syrup. Heat it in 10 second bursts until the mixture is just barely warmed and the tachina is very runny. Set aside.
• Place the oats and chopped almonds into a large mixing bowl and rub them together with the processed dates.
• Add the salt, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds and mix to combine.
• Pour the maple/tachina mixture over the oat mixture and mix really well to combine. Be sure that all ingredients are evenly coated in the tachina and maple syrup.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared 8×8 pan. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to firmly press the mixture together as compactly as possible. It’s very important that the granola mixture be pressed together and very compact.
• Place the pan into the refrigerator and chill for about 4 hours until completely solid.
• Once solid, lift the granola bars out of the tin with the parchment paper. Using a sharp knife, cut them into 9 large bars or any size you desire. Set them aside.
• Melt the chocolate together with the olive oil. You can do this either in a microwave safe bowl in 10 second bursts or over a double boiler.
• Dip a spoon into the chocolate and use it to drizzle the chocolate over each bar then lightly sprinkle each bar with a few flecks of flaky salt. Allow the chocolate to completely set before snacking.
• Store these bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Notes

You may have extra melted chocolate left over. Pour it onto a piece of parchment paper and sprinkle it with flaky salt and some chopped almonds and allow it to fully set. Once hardened, you can break the chocolate apart and store in an air-tight container for the tasty treat!